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It was raining when Nick and Selena arrived at Narita International Airport. As usual, Selena had upgraded their seats to first class, a real luxury on the long flight. As soon as the door on the plane opened, two men in dark business suits came in. They went directly to where Nick and Selena were seated.
"You are Nicholas Carter and Doctor Connor?" one of the men said.
"That's right."
"Welcome to Japan. I am Kensaku. This is my partner, Akio. We've been sent to escort you to your hotel. Everything has been arranged. Please."
"You are from the Public Security Agency, Kensaku-san?" Selena asked in perfect Japanese.
Kensaku managed to conceal his surprise.
"That is correct." He replied in the same language.
"May I see your identification?" she said.
Kensaku showed his credentials. He gestured at the open door.
"Please."
Everyone in the cabin was watching, wondering if the two Americans were being arrested. Nick and Selena got out of their seats. Nick took down their bags from the overhead bin, then the package containing the Masamune sword. Carrying the lethal weapon onto the plane had been arranged by DCI Hood. It was inside a titanium case with biometric lock only Nick or Selena could open.
They followed the escort out of the plane, down the walkway, and into the airport. They went through a side door and bypassed the line at passport control.
"May I have your passports?" Kensaku said.
They handed them over. Kensaku gave the documents to a customs official. He gave them a cursory look and stamped them. Kensaku gave them back to Nick. They walked down a long passage and emerged onto the main floor of the terminal. A gray Nissan waited for them outside.
The area was crowded with hundreds of people. They put the bags into the trunk. Nick kept the sword with him. No one noticed a man watching Nick and Selena climb into the car, or noticed when he spoke into what looked like a Bluetooth earpiece.
Nick and Selena sat in the back of the car, the two escorts in the front. Kensaku turned around so he could face them.
"We're about sixty kilometers from the city. Traffic can be difficult. The drive will take about an hour, perhaps more. This rain may slow us up."
"Are you taking us to our hotel?" Selena asked.
"Yes. Director Yamamoto thought you would like to refresh yourselves and relax a bit after your long flight. He invites you to have dinner with him at seven this evening. He prefers someplace a bit more private than the restaurants in your hotel. Akio and I will take you there, and you can give him the sword at that time. Until then we will remain outside your room as a precaution."
"A precaution?" Nick said.
"A courtesy, really. We do not expect anything unusual to happen."
"Good. I'm a little tired of unusual."
Traffic was heavy. They reached a junction where the road from the airport joined the E51 and turned left toward Tokyo. The traffic reminded Nick of an evening in Los Angeles, bumper-to-bumper and moving slowly, sometimes starting and stopping. Rain pattered on the roof of the car, glistening on the dark pavement.
"This is worse than usual," Kensaku said. "There must be an accident."
They crept along. After several minutes they came upon the cause of the delay. A white minivan and a blue car had collided, blocking one of the lanes. Bits of glass and metal were strewn across the road. A motorcycle cop directed traffic around the wreckage. As their car reached the accident, the cop held up his hand to stop them.
"What now?" Kensaku said.
Akio was driving. He rolled down his window as the cop came up to the car.
Nick's ear began itching.
"Something's wrong," he said.
The motorcycle cop reached the car, took out a gun, and shot Akio in the head. Blood spattered over the windshield, misting across the inside of the car. His second shot hit Kensaku as he reached for the gun under his jacket. Two men jumped out of the white van and ran to the car. They had guns. One of them pulled open the passenger door.
Nick slammed the case with the sword into the man's face. Stunned, the attacker fell backward, dropping his gun. Nick rolled out of the car, grabbed the gun, and fired at the second man, bringing him down. The first man was struggling to his feet. Nick shot him, then turned. The phony cop had his pistol pointed at Selena's head. He shouted something in Japanese.
"Nick, he'll kill me. He says drop the gun. He wants the sword. Give it to him. He means it."
Nick stood in the rain, the lights of a thousand commuter cars lighting up the wet pavement. The cop pressed his gun against Selena's head. His face was contorted, angry.
Ready to pull the trigger.
"Okay, I'm dropping the gun." Nick dropped the pistol on the ground and raised his hands. "Tell him he can have the sword."
Selena let off a stream of Japanese. The man said something back.
"He says take the sword to the motorcycle and strap it on the back. He says hurry or he shoots."
"All right."
Nick picked up the case with the sword and went to the motorcycle. Bungee cords were wrapped around a carrier on the back of the bike. He used the cords to strap the sword to the carrier and stepped away.
Still holding the gun on Selena, the man barked out a command and began moving away from the car, toward the bike.
"He says back away or he'll shoot."
Nick took several steps back. The man pushed Selena away and shifted his aim to Nick. He went to the bike, straddled it, and kicked away the stand, his gun trained on Nick the whole time. The bike was a Honda VFR, big, fast, and powerful. He punched the ignition button. It fired up instantly. With a practiced motion, the man stuffed the gun in his jacket, grabbed the handle bars and took off. By the time Nick could react, the machine and the sword were already a hundred feet away. He watched the taillight disappear into the rain filled night.
Selena got out of the car.
"Are you all right?" he said.
"I'm fine. Just annoyed with myself."
"Why?"
"There was one point when I might've been able to disarm him."
"Sure, or get yourself killed. I'm going to check Kensaku."
There wasn't any point in checking Akio. Most of his brains were scattered around the inside of the car. Nick opened the door and felt Kensaku's neck for a pulse.
"He's still alive."
Selena had a phone in her hand. "I'm on it."
Minutes later sirens sounded in the distance.